arid

1 of 2

adjective

ar·​id ˈa-rəd 

ˈer-əd

1

: excessively dry

specifically : having insufficient rainfall to support agriculture

an arid region

2

: lacking in interest and life : jejune

arid textbooks

aridity

ə-ˈri-də-tē 

a-

noun

aridness

ˈa-rəd-nəs 

ˈer-əd-

noun

aridity

2 of 2

noun

arid·​i·​ty ə-ˈri-də-tē  a- 

plural -es

1

: the quality or state of being arid : dryness

the aridity of desert sands

2

: unavailability of water present in a habitat to organisms occupying that habitat whether caused by inability of the organisms to remove the water or to the ability of the soil to withhold it

Synonyms of arid

Adjective

• boring
• tiring
• dusty
• slow
• weary
• dull
• wearying
• stupid
• dry
• old
• heavy

Examples of arid in a Sentence

Adjective

a dull and arid textbook

an arid speech about duty and responsibility

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

As noted by the Brewers broadcast, a second-inning double by A’s shortstop Alika Williams might have gone foul if not for the extremely arid Las Vegas air. —Levi Weaver, New York Times, 9 June 2026

The semi-arid region’s population has exploded over the past century—the river served only 457,000 people in 1922—as has its agriculture sector, which now covers more than 5 million acres of farmland and accounts for 70% of all water use. —The Week Us, TheWeek, 8 June 2026

Building more data centers in arid areas would put even greater stress on water resources for other urban uses as well as agriculture. —Thomas Coughlin, Forbes.com, 19 May 2026

Morgan Gorris, a scientist at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico, published research last fall showing that people living in arid parts of the country — mainly the West — are more likely to be infected. —Erika Edwards, NBC news, 17 May 2026

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

borrowed from French & Latin; French aride, going back to Middle French, borrowed from Latin āridus, ārdus "dry, waterless, withered, austere (of style)," derivative, with the adjective suffix -idus, of ārēre "to be dry, parched, withered," going back to Indo-European *h₂eh₁s-eh₁-, stative derivative of a verbal base *h₂eh₁s- "make dry with heat," whence also Tocharian A asatär "(it) dries up," Tocharian B osotär; also from the same base a root noun *h₂eh₁s-, whence Hittite ḫāšš- "ashes, dust," from which as thematic derivatives Sanskrit ā́saḥ "ashes, dust," and (as a collective or noun of appurtenance?) *h₂eh₁s-eh₂-, whence Latin āra "altar," Oscan aasaí (locative), Hittite ḫāššā- "hearth," Old High German essa, esse "forge" (from *asjō-), Old Swedish æsia, æssia "smith's fire," Old Icelandic esja "soapstone (used in hearths)" (both from *asjōn-)

Note: Regarding the apparent derivatives ardēre "to burn, emit light or flame" and ardor "burning, fierce heat," see ardent. — Lexikon der indogermanischen Verben gives the "essive" (= stative) form of the verbal base *h₂eh₁s as *h₂h₁s-h₁i̯é- and attributes the length in Latin ārēre to the influence of noun derivatives such as āra. D. Adams, however, regards the original base in Tocharian A and B to have been *ās-, corresponding to the length in the Latin verb (see A Dictionary of Tocharian B, Revised and Greatly Enlarged, Rodopi, 2013, p. 63). A. Kloekhorst (Etymological Dictionary of the Hittite Inherited Lexicon, Brill, 2008, pp. 322-23) regards the short vowel in Germanic as the residue of an oblique case form *h₁h₂s- of the root noun. See also ash entry 2, azalea.

Noun

Latin ariditas, from aridus + -itas -ity

First Known Use

Adjective

1652, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing arid

• hyper-arid

Rhymes for arid

• farad
• semiarid

Kids Definition

arid

adjective

ar·​id ˈar-əd 

: very dry

especially : not having enough rainfall to support agriculture

aridity

ə-ˈrid-ət-ē 

a-

noun